{"id":10271,"date":"2021-05-31T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-05-31T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeline.philips.com\/resources\/blog\/2021\/05\/how-family-caregiving-is-changing.html"},"modified":"2023-04-03T10:33:17","modified_gmt":"2023-04-03T15:33:17","slug":"how-family-caregiving-is-changing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeline.com\/blog\/how-family-caregiving-is-changing\/","title":{"rendered":"How Family Caregiving Is Changing"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The number of American family members caring for adult relations is on the rise, according to data from the National Alliance for Caregiving\u2019s (NAC) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.caregiving.org\/research\/caregiving-in-the-us\/caregiving-in-the-us-2020\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2020 Caregiving in the U.S.<\/a> study.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen looking at caregivers for adults only, the prevalence of caregiving has risen from 16.6% in 2015 to 19.2% in 2020 \u2014 an increase of over 8 million adults providing care to a family member or friend age 18 or older, primarily driven by a significant increase in the prevalence of caring for a family member or friend who is age 50 or older,\u201d reports C. Grace Whiting, J.D., NAC\u2019s president and CEO.<\/p>\n<h2>The Changing Nature of Family Caregiving<\/h2>\n<p>It\u2019s not just the numbers that are changing. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lifeline.com\/blog\/the-changing-role-of-family-caregivers\/\">roles and responsibilities of family caregiving are also evolving<\/a>, according to the NAC report:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>26% care for someone with Alzheimer\u2019s disease or dementia<\/li>\n<li>24% tend to more than one person<\/li>\n<li>23% say caregiving has made their health worse<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Additionally, national health statistics show that six in 10 American adults live with one chronic condition and four in 10 live with two or more<sup>1<\/sup>, and are living longer &#8211; life expectancy at birth for the total U.S. population was 77.8 years<sup>2<\/sup>. This data shows how complex family caregiving has become.<\/p>\n<h2>The Increasing Use of Technology for Family Caregivers<\/h2>\n<p>Innovators have responded to the changing nature of family caregiving with technology to help keep elders safe, make coordinating care easier and lower stress, including:<\/p>\n<h3>Telemedicine<\/h3>\n<p>Before the COVID-19 outbreak, telemedicine was slowly gaining traction. Stay-at-home orders and distancing requirements forced more rapid deployment to make doctor visits and check-ins easier for families with sufficient internet access. &#8220;The best thing coming out of telehealth is the sense that we need to triage care and that there is a lot that can be handled from home,\u201d Whiting explains. \u201cSome of the basic general practice type healthcare needs can be very effectively treated at home, and saving everyone, and especially caregivers who live with the person they care for, time and stress.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>Connected Health Devices<\/h3>\n<p>Remote health monitoring and other technologies make it easier for caregivers to manage their own and their family member\u2019s care. For example, continuous glucose monitoring tracks and reports information to support glycemic control. Medication dispensers make it easier to take medicines as directed and avoid complications from missed or too many doses. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lifeline.com\/medical-alert-systems\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Medical alert systems<\/a> enable wearers to call for assistance \u2013 and some contact emergency services when a fall is detected whether or not help is requested.<\/p>\n<h3>Apps<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cDistance caregivers may benefit from technology that gives them the ability to be in more than one place at once &#8211; enabling them to help with hands-off tasks like care coordination and to facilitate communication between care recipients, care providers and others, like family,\u201d Whiting notes. Many pharmacies, hospitals and doctors\u2019 offices have mobile- and web-based portals that enable prescription refills, appointment scheduling and direct communication with professionals. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lifeline.com\/blog\/useful-mobile-apps-for-caregivers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Other apps<\/a> allow caregivers to exchange information with healthcare professionals and others in the care circle.<\/p>\n<h3>Social Networking and Virtual Experiences<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cCaregiving through the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lifeline.com\/blog\/caregiver-burnout\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">sense of isolation<\/a>\u00a0many caregivers experience,\u201d Whiting notes. \u201cMany caregivers lost access to critical social supports and interactions with their social networks because of restrictions related to the pandemic and reduction in the services they and their care recipient received.\u201d Social networks, video calls and virtual parties and classes can reduce feelings of isolation and provide important emotional, intellectual and physical stimulation that may help reduce stress and improve overall wellness.<\/p>\n<p>The role of the family caregiver is constantly evolving. Though challenging at times, advancements in technology and policy will continue to make looking after our older family members easier and more rewarding.<\/p>\n<p>&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;-<\/p>\n<p><b><u>References:<\/u><\/b><\/p>\n<p>[1] Centers for Disease Control &#8211; National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/chronicdisease\/resources\/infographic\/chronic-diseases.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><i>Chronic Diseases in America<\/i><\/a><i>. <\/i>March 11, 2021<\/p>\n<p>[2] Arias E, Tejada-Vera B, Ahmad F. Provisional life expectancy estimates for January through June, 2020. Vital Statistics Rapid Release; no 10. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. February 2021. DOI:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.15620\/cdc:100392\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.15620\/cdc:100392<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The number of American family members caring for adult relations is on the rise, according to data from the National Alliance for Caregiving\u2019s (NAC) 2020 Caregiving in the U.S. study. \u201cWhen looking at caregivers for adults only, the prevalence of caregiving has risen from 16.6% in 2015 to 19.2% in 2020 \u2014 an increase of<a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.lifeline.com\/blog\/how-family-caregiving-is-changing\/\"> Read more >><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":20402,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[31,44],"class_list":["post-10271","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-caregiving","tag-lifeline-cares-app","tag-medical-alert-systems"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.9 (Yoast SEO v26.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How Family Caregiving Is Changing | Lifeline<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"More Americans care for older loved ones, many with chronic conditions. 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